Covid-19 will change our finances permanently ~ Thread

If you miscalculated on housing and moved into an apartment you can't afford, now is as good a time to downsize as ever. Not only are you likely to be less susceptible to 'judgment', you'll eventually have to move anyway.

The 08 financial crisis did not impact as badly as Covid will. It was largely localized to to the financial sector and to the major economies, even with modest to significant spillover effect to other industries and economies. Covid-19 is sort of an equal opportunity thing.

Just a glance of how bad things are in SSA:
1. SA was junked by Moody's in late March, ZAR is in top-3 worst performing currencies worldwide.
2. Supertankers stuck at sea with Nigerian oil and no buyers.
3. WB sees the first contraction in SSA for the first time in 25 yrs

4. Zambia and Seychelles have called for debt restructuring - already.
5. 25 million hectares impacted by locust invasion in KE, ET and SQ, in addition to corona.
6. Unanimous growth cuts across the board
7. Hunger and poverty will eventually lead to civil strife.

Away from SSA, Goldman Sachs sees a 35% reduction in QoQ growth in advanced economies this quarter, which is 4 times worse than the previous record set in 08. You can expect EM and frontier economies will catch a serious fever if things get this dire for big econs.

In Kenya, top FX earners like diaspora remittances, horticulture and tourism will be reeling from the debilitating hit for months at least. But the fact is, each one of us will be affected in the end.

Loss of a loved one is the worst it can get of course. But looking at it from an employment standpoint, companies are laying off people, cutting salaries, freezing hiring, or folding up entirely. Even if you keep your job and your salary, you are going to be less secure about it

When we get through this, we shall have a permanent mark in our conscience, not unlike folks who lived through, say the great depression. Business and individual risk taking is going to take a hit, and stability will be at the forefront of our minds at the expense of growth.

You'll be more mindful of putting away some money for a rainy day. You'll be more skeptical of "job security," you'll have more respect for living within your means, you'll probably be more cynical of politicians and perhaps appreciate that some things can actually stop reggae.

You will probably be more careful about investing with folks who sound too convincing (I hear some people in some places are having investments rolled over unilaterally)
Risk will no longer be an abstract concept anymore.
You'll no longer need me save you from yourself .

It will become more and more clear how bad things are actually going to be as the world returns to work. Things are not going back to normal cos we'll now have a new normal.
It will be like the blot of a criminal record on our collective résumé.